The Big Eek! Plus! Fun with Joya de Nicaragua and Tatuaje

The pair of caballeros and their lovely partners headed to Springfield, MA for the 99th annual Eastern States Exposition, known to most folks as The Big E. (Insert your own joke here.)

"The weeks-long shindig is billed as "New England's Great State fair". It is the largest agricultural event on the eastern seaboard and the sixth-largest fair in the nation. The Big E is inclusive of all six of the New England states: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.* Each of the New England states is prominently represented at the fair," according to the Almighty Wikipedia.

We joined all the people in the world there. And they all decided to show up while we were safely ensconced in New Hampshire, thus lulling me into thinking the crowds wouldn't be all that bad. I do not like crowds. I do like Xanax**, which helps me not hate crowds of people as much, so there's that...

It may be nice and peaceful when you go in right as they open...
but not when you come out!! [source]

But that's beside the point. We're here to talk about cigars, and that's what we shall do...

While in Connecticut,

[source]

...we happened upon the Connecticut Valley Tobacconists, who were rolling and selling cigars.

[source]

Valentino picked one up and said it was a good smoke, although I think he was a bit distracted by the throngs of people to fully enjoy it. Unfortunately, all the smells of deep-fried everything in the world (or at least New England) kept me from actually enjoying it, so we're going to have to take his word that the cigar was pretty darned fab.

Once he finished that, he and Caballero #2 synchronized their smoking and this happened:

No, we did not ride any rides.
Unless you consider eating and shopping a ride.
Then, wheeee!

Every time I see this picture, in my mind,
I make a little toasting with glasses noise.
Clink! A votre santé! To your health!

Caballero #2 gave Valentino this Joya de Nicaragua Cabinetta, which I luuurved. Unlike the first cigar of the day, we were seeking refuge from the rain while he smoked this one, so I actually got to enjoy it.

Get them all! [source]

You know how any Nicaraguan cigar is almost always a slam dunk in Valentino World, so this one screams "Love me!" before a flame ever touches it. Because it's on the label and all. And because the filler and binder are from that very land and the wrapper is Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade and Nicaraguan Habana Criollo at the head.

What does all this mean? Super creaminess, which I'm learning is a slam dunk in Penny World. And just like a sugary dessert is enhanced by a pinch of salt, the pepperiness perks up the creaminess. This delight also has undertones of almonds, cocoa, and even a bit of earthiness.

Here's an interesting fact: Did you know Drew Estate handles the U.S. distribution of Joya, Nicaragua's oldest cigar company? True story.

Per usual, Caballero #2 brought a pocketful of cigars. For this portion of the show, he produced...wait for it...the Tatuaje Tattoo Caballero***!!

And then get these!! [source]

According to Cigar Coop, "While Tatuaje Cigars are made by My Father Cigars, this particular cigar is made at Tabacalera Cubana (TACUBA) in Esteli, Nicaragua.  TACUBA is a factory owned by the Garcia family.  It was opened when the Garcias expanded its operation out of El Rey de los Habanos in Little Havana, but before the construction of the My Father Cigars S.A. factory.  TACUBA is still used by the Garcia family today."****

As I didn't get close enough for a full-on second-hand smoke, we're going to go to CI for some deets: "The buzz has been flying over the reintroduction of the Tatuaje Tattoo series, which originally appeared in 2011 in a limited edition version. The cigar was massively popular, and for good reason, a great blend without the boutique price tag. There is no question why the new Tattoo should be any different, seeing as how it comes with an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper and an enticing mix of Nicaraguan filler leaves. Medium bodied and bursting with notes of cocoa, leather, pepper and a slight sweetness. To Tatuaje, all we have to say is this: Welcome back."

Many more cigars were smoked; much more food eaten; many much more people bumped into and hidden from.  Would I go back? I would, with a Xanax at the ready, just in case I start to get eeked and freaked out. You should come with us! I have enough for everyone! Wheee!

 

*Oh Vermont, I love your lovely earrings that lovingly grace my lovely ears. And New Hampshire? The maple candy? I want to marry it. Is that legal in your state?

**Which I have taken to calling "Mr. X" because I think it sounds very mysterious.

***I can't make this stuff up! How serendipitous!*****

****I don't know why the font is messed up here. Move on, please.

*****This is one of my favorite words of all time.

Mommy, Where do Liga Privada wrappers come from? Or: Another amazingly fun place and time with amazingly fun people!!

The other day, we went here:

Hahahaha. No, I did not take this picture. [source]

Organized by the nice folks at the Connecticut Valley Tobacco Museum, we attended the 4th Annual Cigar BBQ where the Two Cabelleros and the Three Musketeers got together for an awesome time! (And me, of course.)

Birds of a feather...oh. Wait. Not a feather among them!

Before we got to the food and cigar portion of the show, we were lucky enough to take a tour of a working tobacco farm. Steve Jarmoc (below) explained the broadleaf and Havana growing process, from seed to sticks. I want to tell you all about that serious coolness soon, but right now let's focus on this event, okay?

See the tobacco over this nice man's head?
Pretty good chance that's going to make Drew Estate cigar wrappers.* Just sayin'...

A little bit creepy and a lotta bit cool.

During the drying process.

Two sides of the same leaf.
So, in turning over a new leaf--you get something completely different! 

Yeah. That happened. Cabellero #2 and his broadleaf chapeau.**

Would you like some T*** and tobacco?

Then we headed back to the museum, where the amazing Karin Mills Tranghese, owner of Cigar Room II generously, generously, generously gave each of the attendees an awesome goodie bag of two cigars, a cutter, and matches. (Naturally, Valentino walked away with mine as well; I guess that's just as well, since he paid for my ticket.)

Karin and the Caballeros.  What a great band name!

Nat Hayden's Real Pit BBQ provided some delicious food, which gave us energy to roam the grounds, checking out the antique farm equipment and cool museum displays--and smoke/second-hand smoke cigars!!

I'd say how sad I am that I have to wait a whole year to hang out with these folks again, but BUT!! A bunch of us are heading to this event:

You should join us!!

*::cough:: Liga Privada ::cough::

**That's French for "fancy-ass hat."

***That's what I call Valentino. Maybe if you're nice, you can, too. It requires a letter of request and three references. Or give him a cigar. A good one.

Call of the Wild (Wild West), Part the Second

When last we left our heroes, they'd made the acquaintance of some real purdy cigars--the CAO BraziliaAmazon Basin in all its 6 x 52 sexiness.

Speaking of sexiness, Hellloooo, you handsome devils!

Speaking of sexiness, Hellloooo, you handsome devils!

And, well, hello, you gorgeous creature! Pssst. Rumor has it you can smoke right through the band.
Valentino didn't get the chance because
I wanted to play with its sproinginess.

After rustling up some delish grub, thanks to our wonderful hosts and all-around good people Christine and Anibal, this happened:

In which the two caballeros become the three amigos! Fire is such a transformative element, don't you think?

In which the two caballeros become the three amigos!
Fire is such a transformative element, don't you think?

I crossed everything, from fingers to signals, and held my breath, hoping this cigar didn't wind up being unloved, especially since we had a canoe's worth coming up the river.

They're here!!

Then I remembered that breath-holding would prove counter productive to my ultimate goal of sucking in all the deliciousness while they did all the work.* I waited expectantly, fingers on iPhone ready to take notes of their every observation--just like a cub reporter following Marshall Bat Masterson around, trying to get a good quote for the newspaper.**

I really worried*** that these cigars might be bat-shit crazy strong, but once the fine gentlemen puffed their smoke in my direction, all worries abated. On first blush, the Brazilia Amazon Basin punches you with strong pepperiness, but after half an inch or so****, it started to smooth out and get creamy.

"Complex," Valentino said.

Caballero #2 nodded and said, "Leather bite."*****

There were certainly undertones of s'mores, although that may have come from the dessert making its way up to my mouth. (I'm a good multi-tasker.)

After the first third, all three amigos agreed that the sweetness increased.  And no, this had nothing to do with the chocolately goodness.  I love these guys, but share dessert?  Hahahaha. Just...no.

Thanks a million to Rolling Stogies (Hi, guys! See you next year!) for their travelling mercantile, which allowed us to own and share this amazeballs cigar. Mike Strategakis, who owns this superfun business (check it out!), reminded us only 2,000 boxes exist in the whole entire world. This forced our usually-slow shopping-hand in the first place.****** (Valentino likes to research before purchasing. I was jumping up and down behind him, shrieking, "They're getting away! Hurry!" At 2:00 a.m. Shut up. I was drunk on lobster tails.)

And then! Last night, while at Habanos, feting a friend's 21st birthday******* (Hi, Hollie!)

 

Wheeeeee!

 

..and simultaneously writing the last blog post, our friend Eric told Valentino that he had a couple of Brazilia Amazon Basins sitting in his humidor at home. He, too, said he was afraid they were going to be super strong and he should probably have an entire Thanksgiving dinner to prepare for the onslaught of the powerful cigar. Ah, the old adage, "Fight fire with turkey..."

But that's the sneaky illusion of the Basin. Even though the Ecuador Sumatra wrapper is darker than a thousand midnights (one of my favorite books!), it still errs on the side of medium-to-full rather than full-frontal. So don't be afraid, Eric et al. Light it up as you watch with a few amigos as the sun set over the chaparral. Or we could meet somewhere air-conditioned, enjoy the CAO Brazilia Amazon Basin, and watch a spaghetti western.




*And they work so very hard for me, these men do.

**"Never run a bluff with a six-gun." - Bat Masterson

***I'm a worrier. What can I say? It's a requirement of my birth order. (First.)

****We're very precise here. You'll just have to deal with it.

 

*****Description, not command, obvs. Not, "Leather, bite." That's a whole other kind of blog.

******Know when to hold 'em and all that.

*******I have socks older than this girl. I'm not even kidding. But still, Happy Birthday!

Call of the Wild (Wild West), Part the First

During IPCPR, the news started rolling out of the desert* about new and amazing (for the most part) smokes, stogies, tobacco tubes, whatever you want to call them, rustling up my interest somethin' fierce.

Let's talk about cowboys for a moment, shall we? When I was a kid, some of the best days were the ones I spent with my dad watching westerns on TV all Saturday afternoon. Rifleman! Alias Smith and Jones! Bonanza! The Big Valley!  Oh, there was fun! Adventure! Community! All the things I love (except cupcakes; there were never any cupcakes)! Plus lots of dirt, of which I am not a fan, but will certainly overlook for fun and adventure.**

Hello, boys! [source]

In decorating, I love the rusticness (rusticocity?) of the Old West, which does not jibe with Valentino's modern sensibilities. He does not love my four-poster bed and antique quilt. His fondness for found art is somewhere around his love for crying babies. (Nil.) The closest he's getting to swinging saloon doors is another viewing of Django Unchained.

Me: Yay!  Him: No! [source]

One day recently, I was accidentally on the CI website, accidentally looking for birthday gift ideas for Valentino. And I saw this:

CAO Brazilia Amazon Basin

My heart leapt. You can see the little bit of barbed-wiriness on that band, right? The band made out of tobacco leaf? The moment I saw it, a montage of happy Old West thoughts flashed through my brain***

It wasn't available for ordering yet, so I held my horses. And then! Then! We were at the St. Anthony's Feast in Boston the other day, visiting with our friends at Rolling Stogies

(Hi Mike! Hi Joe! Hi Kevin!!) [source]

...and guess what they had!!! The CAO Brazilia Amazon Basin! Zomygah, you guys!! It was even better (visually) than I suspected! Who turned the Cool Factor up to 11?

Granted, these aren't actually from the Old West (bad humidity and all) but instead from...well... Read this:

"The special sauce used to create Amazon Basin is a tobacco called 'Braganca,'**** a rare tobacco harvested from a remote region in the Amazonian rainforest. It’s really crazy, actually. Everything from its taste to the way it’s cultivated. Grown in a virgin, tropical land in the rainforest and harvested only once every 3 years, Braganca may be one of the most elusive tobaccos in the world.

"After the tobacco is harvested, it’s rolled by hand into tubes and fermented for 6 months. Then, it must be transported by canoe back to the mainland. Wild in every sense. To create CAO Amazon Basin, this Braganca tobacco was blended with tobaccos from 5 different countries and finished with a dark, Ecuadorian Sumatra ligero wrapper. But despite the breadth of tobaccos contained within, you can still taste and smell the unique Amazonian tobacco almost instantly. An exotic, distinctive taste that’s bold and very unique…unlike anything you’ve ever had before. 

"Additionally, each cigar is finished with a rustic, 100% twisted tobacco ‘band’ that adds another unique touch." <--shhh. That might be my favorite part!!

We bought three--one for Valentino, one for Caballero #2, and one for the humidor (which makes it sound like its a monster that needs to be fed--which I guess it kind of is.)

The Two Caballeros!! With their loot!

As we wandered around the festival some more, chatting about our exploits the next day (party!) we realized it would only be right to give the host one also.  Nothing for the humidor. (Shhh. I'm writing this from an undisclosed location so it doesn't know.)

This is why if I lived in the Old West, I would need the internet. As Valentino purchased ceci and fava beans from our favorite ceci dealer***** (Whatever, dude), I went onto the CI website and bought a five-pack. I know!! While surrounded by carnie games ready to shuck you and fresh oysters just waiting to be shucked! (Again, whatever, dude.)

On the ride home, our love grew deeper****** and upon arrival of Casa Fun, we moseyed for the online mercantile and lassoed a whole box.

Maybe we could send Valentino out to check the fences and do a little redecorating while we wait...



*Yes, like tumble weeds.

**I would love to live in the Old West if there were a few changes, including indoor plumbing, online shopping, and air conditioning.

***Including the Brady Bunch episode. What can I say? I'm a child of the 70s.

[source]

****Anyone else reading this as "Brangelina"? No? Just us?

*****I'm not sure if it's good or bad that he remembers us from year to year.

******Keep in mind, not one had been lit yet.

History, Class, History Class, and a Giant Cookie

So last night, while tooling around the North End of Boston at the St. Anthony's Feast, a cry of great despair echoed through the city. It came from me, if you must know. If we didn't get to Modern Pastry soon, they would be out of lobster tails again and we would return home with much sadness and no pastries.

Dudes, it's filled with diplomat cream--a marriage of pastry cream and whipped cream.
Also known as heaven in a crunchy pastry shell.
Only get them from Modern Pastry, though.
No one else does them correctly. Trust me on this. [source]
Also, not my hand. Who can get anything done with nails like that?

We pushed by slow-moving families with carriages and baby detritus;* we threw ourselves in front of cars to cross streets.**

Success! Pastries purchased, no immediate deaths resulting.  We wandered, contented with our future satiation,*** moseying to the park where Paul Revere sits atop his mighty steed, which sits atop a mighty block of granite.****

[source]

 

Naturally, a cigar was necessary, so Valentino reached into the pocket of his Tommy Bahama shirt and produced a Perdomo 20th Anniversary. 

This particular stick has been lounging in the humidor, basking in the goodness of perfect humidity and even temperature for ages. We can't remember if it was last fall or the spring before that when we attended a Perdomo dinner with the great Roy Kirby, courtesy of Paul Joyle of Mr. J's Havana Shop and his mad party-planning skills.****
 

So when he selected this baby***** for the great ride to the big city, the Gordo (6 x 60) with a sun-grown wrapper and Nicaraguan filler and wrapper was good to go. One of the many joys that came with this smoke--besides the amazeballs flavor profile of creaminess and earthiness and coffeeness (yes, it is a word) with just a teeny tiny bit of pepperiness, a perfect second-hand smoke for the delicious raspberry sandwich cookie, which happened to be occupying all the rest of my senses.

According to CI, "Perdomo 20th Anniversary celebrates this rich, family history of Nicaraguan handmades. Each cigar employs bold, Cuban-seed long-fillers grown throughout Nicaragua's black, volcanic soils. Top-priming tobaccos from Esteli, Jalapa, and Condega....patiently aged and skillfully blended to perfection. But then there's the wrapper. Where the fun really happens. Nicaraguan, Cuban-seed sun-grown wrappers from the highest priming, extra-fermented, cedar-aged, then barrel-aged in old bourbon barrels for 14+ months prior to being applied. A gentle box-press is the finishing touch to this impressive Nicaraguan puro."

As a side note, I've always been super impressed with Perdomo, from the very moment I met Mr. Kirby****** and he waved the 20th Anniversary before my starry eyes. Then he lit it, so, yeah... I was a goner. The brand represents high quality and class, which is further exemplified by their outstanding website, filled with education, behind-the-scenes action, and a serious collection of events. Spend some time there. Learn things. Go to your local tobacconist and prove me correct about the 20th Anniversary. I'll buy you a cookie if you do.

And! To make this all come full circle, and to tease you about a party I still haven't gotten around to writing about, Caballero #2 gave Valentino this as a birthday gift last week.******* Thank you, thank you, thank you!

It's gorgeous in real life. We almost don't want to muck it up! Almost.  [source]

And thank you, Perdomo, for this amazing end-of-the-night smoke. A great way to bid adieu to a season of Italian festivals. Now the countdown to my birthday commences! Consider yourself warned!


 

*Why, exactly, were these kids out so late? Just curious.

 

**Me. I live by the "Pedestrians always have the right of way" mantra. Valentino does not and, as a result, frequently grabs my arm to save me from myself. Reminder: He's not a native New Englander. 

 

***A cookie the size of my head also may have left the shop with us. No way would I be able to wait for sweet goodness until we got home. Hahaha. No.

 

****Valentino brought up the cool historical significance of the park in which we sat, right near the Old North Church. One if by land and two if by sea and all that. As a native Massachusetts resident, I looked around, remembering that the place has more social significance than a good place to eat midnight snacks and (second-hand) smoke delicious cigars. I feel like I should go read a history book. Or at least a Wikipedia entry. 

 

*****His monthly cigar dinner events are about to start up again for the season. You should come and join us and have a rip-roaring good time!! Call the shop and ask for more details! (We'll even let you sit with us if you're up for a spot of crazy!)

 

*****Probably the wrong word to use, since he would soon light it on fire.

 

******The fact that I used "Mr." should be quite telling.

 

*******Along with a ton of other things. The Cabelleros' gift giving is getting out of hand. But who's complaining?

I hate to say it, but no other title fits*: Boys and their Toys (and room for activities!)

Here's what I've noticed: these guys have partially reverted back to their Matchbox car collecting days. And I don't mean just the Two Caballeros. I mean pretty much alllll the guys (and probably some ladies too, but I don't know many women who smoke cigars).

Even in the facebook groups we belong to exists a constant stream of "Hey! Look what I got!" I'm not saying we're immune to that kind of joviality, as a certain Italian happened to have posted this picture with exactly the same message:

Look! Opus X Lost City and Double Corona!
One of these is getting to be more rare than Ishmael's white whale.
And has a life expectancy of Quint's boat.
(Yes, I am mixing my references. You'll just have to deal with it.)

I met the Two Caballeros and Nathalie at Habanos the other night and some serious cigar trading had already occurred, as well as some wing-eating. That's okay, because my two men, they are kind and generous and brought me some good eats from the Boneyard and all was right with the world.**

Caballero #2 gifted his counterpart with these gems, which they both showed me as I nom-nom-nomed. Their activities*** harkened back to when my son was young and he and his friends would get together and showcase their new treasures. Actually, that still happens now, but with guns and cars rather than $5 toys.

Doc ain't playin' no more. We're talking serious booty.

Well played, but now a retaliation is in order. Eventually someone's going to have to cry "Uncle" or this is going to get really expensive. More expensive. I'm wondering if there's a reset button where they start again with packages of Backwoods purchased at the gas station.

After I had food in me and stopped making the hungry-cranky face, we headed to Broadway Cigars, which is also a cool place to hang out, not just buy cigars that you've been desperately looking for. We met up with Bobby Ianiero, who is one of the big cheeses (cheesi?) but you'd never know by his super cool laid-back awesomeness. We also met JV, who, from what I understand, is the cheesiest of all. (In a good way. In a trying-to-force-a-metaphor way.)



Why do we drive by it Every. Single. Time?
We need to learn to pay more attention...
and not gaze longingly into each others' eyes while driving.

Broadway is BYOB (with a small corkage fee if you're not a member) and OIYOP (no charge, member or not).**** The folks make you feel all settled in and cozy the moment you walk into the large place. Want to sit and read? There's a place for that. Play cards? Yep. Chess? Got it. Private gathering? Roger that--if you're a member. They're also having a super groovy event soon, that I can't attend because I get to teach people how to write. You are lucky. I am not. You should go--and tell Bobby I sent you! (And I'll only charge you one of the cigars you're going to receive at the dinner, sooo...extra lucky you!*****)

Oh yeah, and Matchbox trading also happened there. Bobby gave Valentino these******:

Hello, new friends...

Here's the thing: How do you trade with someone who has all the cigars? I've put on my thinking beanie and so has Valentino. It's like trying to one-up someone who owns a toy store. Because really, we all know it's about one-upsmanship. It's guys we're talking about here.*******

The generosity doesn't stop with cigars, though. Nathalie fulfilled the BYOB and the OIYOP, generously bringing our favorite beverages and ordering a pizza the size of a small nation. And don't worry--we're thinking about how we'll thank her as well... Be prepared, Nathalie...



*Trust me: I tried.

**The thing abut teaching a four hour class that is an hour from home means an entire feeding is missed--and missed dearly.

***This word always reminds me of this, and now that I think about it, the Two Caballeros remind me of them too:

****Order In Your Own Pizza.

*****Finders-keepers fee.

******This is not the first time: Another time we were there, this happened:

*******Don't go getting all crazy-feminist all over my butt. We all know this is true. And I love them for it.

Perfect Storm, Perfect Cigar, Perfect Gentlemen*

The other day, when we stopped at Mr. J's Havana Shop in West Warwick, RI (one of our all-time favorite places), we heard about the new J. Grotto Anniversary that's coming very very soon (although that's all we're going to tell you about that right now).

One of the things I like to do there at Mr. J's, which I may have mentioned in the past, is gaze longingly at the sticks, trying not to lick the glass, and pretend I'm rich enough to buy two of each for Valentino--one to smoke and one to keep. However, I am not, so I have to be selective in my purchases.

Unless:
1. There are two particular cigars that have been sitting there for months, taunting me.
2. Those two cigars are cool looking.
3. They remind me of the two caballeros.
4. The two caballeros are cool looking.

In the perfect storm of cigar purchases, all these things happened.

Not my picture because I forgot to take one, but these were the two... [source]

Here's the deal:

Caballero #1 leans toward the mild-to-medium cigar, although he'll try anything and has been known to fall in love with a full-bodied baby.** I'm looking at you, Nica Rustica. So he got the La Flor Dominicana Mysterio Natural. (Because it looked like it would be milder even though I know--I KNOW--that's not always the case.)

Caballero #2 prefers full-to-blowyourfreakingheadoff, although he too will smoke almost anything. (The "any port in a storm" method of cigar smoking.) He received the  LFD Mysterio Obscuro.

So when I saw those two lying next to each other (cigars--get your mind out of the gutter), I got all generous spendy and demanded*** the 7 x 54 Perfectos become mine.****

We gathered at Habanos and commenced smoking and second-hand smoking and chatting with friends! (Hi Nathalie! Hi Amanda! Hi Eric! Hi Sean!)

We've already discussed my bad photography skillz. Sorry!

I know we've discussed this cigar's cousin before, but perfect storm, baby! Perfect. Storm. And perfect smoke, bringing together peppery notes with some cedar and coffee.

Look at how cool the burn is:

Valentino says, "Go ahead and try to knock my ash off. I dare you."

No, really. Try. That sucker refused to let go.

Here's a cool video about rolling the Mysterio:

After that smoke, we all headed to Ale House Cigar Bar to bask in the joy that is cool-guy Jake. While there, Caballero #2 may have purchased a box of five. Yeah, they come in boxes of five. Yeah. You should get one--if there are any left after I get there!


*::cough cough::

**Shut up.

***And by demanded, I mean I said, "May I please have the two last Mysterios?"

****Not unlike I have made the caballeros my own personal knights in shining armour.

LFD Mysterioso: Ask and ye shall receive (with a valid credit card)

You can get anything on the mighty mighty internets (except that La Gloria Cubana Serie R Esteli).*

As you may remember, I fell in love with these:

The La Flor Dominicana 7 x 55 perfecto is about as lovely as a cigar can get, with its Connecticut Broadleaf Oscuro & Ecuadoran Connecticut (for the accents) wrapper. Created for the 2013 holiday season, the collectors edition popped onto my radar almost too late.  Almost, because I scored and ha ha ha yay!

I searched the internets long and far and wide and deep. Nothing. Just a lot of "Sold out" messages.  I had the sad. Then on facebook Saturday evening Broadway Cigars in Providence, RI said they had some, but customers were limited to two each. I figured I could run in and out of the store, purchasing two each time. (Of course I would be sure to change my disguise, like a kid anxious for the most candy on Halloween.)

All Sunday, while I sanded furniture, I kept thinking "I've got to get to Broadway!" even more desperately than an aging actor dreaming of The Great White Way. So Monday morning, bright and early (for me) we went! Huzzah!

I've only been to Broadway Cigars once before. That time, while Valentino and our friend Rob chatted with some guys watching a football game, I discussed one of my favorite plays, A Doll's House, with one of the smokers preparing for a lit class exam. I love the diversity of folks you find in a cigar lounge.

This time, we spent a bunch of time chatting with Brenda, who knows as much, if not more, about cigars and the cigar business as anyone I've ever met--from rep to journalist.  If I owned a cigar shop or lounge, I'd steal her away from Broadway in a nanosecond. True story.

Luckily, she didn't make us run in and out of the store, doing quick changes.  We made off with the last seven Mysterioso barberpoles (one box of five and two loose sticks) with one swipe of the credit card.

I own you now! (Gosh, aren't they gorgeous?)

Of course, all this was done with a plan. The two caballeros had a date at Habanos lounge that night for some serious debauchery. Well, as much as one can be while drinking high-end liquor and chatting with friends. So, yeah.

I'm terrible at keeping secrets, so the minute the second caballero came in, I got antsy and handed him one of the Mysteriosos (Mysteriosoii? Mysteriosoes?). Valentino and I thought it would be fun for the two of them to try the cigar together. Naturally, I had to be there in order to participate in my own special way--flirting and second-hand smoking.

There are no words...
How is it possible this much awesome can fit into one picture frame?

 

I have to admit, I did hold my breath when they each cut the cap.  It was so gorgeous!  Don't destroy it! But then we moved on to the next round of gorgeousness. Once the foot was toasted and they respectively began the experience, one of the fine gentlemen said, "One of the best smokes I've had in a long time." The other agreed.  Me too! (Well, you know what I mean.) As in the past, I sat between them so I could have a full assault of delicious. The smell of coffee and a little bit of citrus milled about in the air.  As I continue to learn about cigars, I'm distinguishing the different notes as it burns. Of course, then I go and research other reviews, to see if I'm even close.  Once again, not only was I close, I hit the bullseye! Check out Cigar Coop's review!

 

You can tell they want to get back to smoking more than anything.

Because they only come five in a box (and, in case you didn't know, the box costs many, many dollars--between 85-95 smackaroos), we figured this would be a cigar that would be rationed more than Spam during a war, especially since we only had five left! Five cigars, not five cans of Spam.** And the internets were not helping me find them...until!! Until!! I scored a couple boxes from Corona Cigars.  Wahoo! Have I mentioned how much I love the mighty, mighty internets?



*Case in point: That's where I got Valentino! (For only the cost of one month of match.com!)

**I suddenly have a hankering for pan-fried Spam. Yummmm.  (Pardon me while my white trash is showing.)